What is the process with getting my medical care by phone instead of face –to- face?
We are encouraging you to practice social distancing in order to limit the spread of this COVID-19 virus.
What this means is that we want to give you information about how you can get your medical care without coming into the surgery.
If you do need to come into the surgery, we will be able to care for you with appointments for patients who are both well and unwell.
However if you do not have to come into the surgery it will help to keep you and others healthy.
If all you need is a prescription or referral please go to our website. You will find their information about how you can get a prescription or referral online.
Please download the AMS app. There are more details on our website. With this app you can make an appointment, cancel an appointment, reschedule an appointment and also request prescriptions and referrals.
If you meet the Medicare criteria for being an at-risk person you are eligible to have a bulk billed telephone consultation with your doctor. This can be booked through the AMS app. We can also book it over the phone with our receptionists. We will be reaching out to those who are vulnerable in our community over the coming days to let them know if they are eligible for bulk billed telephone appointments.
If you do not meet the governments criteria for having a bulk billed phone appointment, we can offer you a telephone appointment for your problem at the same price that you would usually pay when you come in here. You will not be able to receive a Medicare rebate. If you are unhappy about this I suggest you communicate with the government. We are not very happy about that either.
If you fear that you may have Covid-19 or have another respiratory illness you can use our special Covid-19 phone appointment. It is cheaper than our usual standard appointment. It is only for this problem.
If we talk to you on the telephone and we need to see you we will make an appointment to see you in the clinic with the right doctor.
Please be patient with our receptionists. They must ask each and every patient about symptoms of Covid-19. This is making the phone process take much longer than usual. On top of this many people are calling the surgery because they are unwell. If you can resolve your problem using online apps please use them, and leave the phone for those who really need it.